PICTON, Ont. – August 4, 2016 – Andrew Hennessy turned in another impressive performance on Saturday night at Brighton Speedway to win his sixth Canadian Modified feature of the season. The win was the icing on the cake for an impressive July as Hennessy earned three wins and extended his streak of top-five finishes to 12 this season.
The Picton, Ont. driver has not finished worse than fifth this year in his 12 starts. In baseball terms, Hennessy is batting .500. He wins every other start behind the wheel of his RJ Equipment Rentals/Drew Harrison Haulage No.87.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had a season this far along that’s gone this well. We’ve had decent stretches before, but this year we haven’t broken anything in any of the features,” Hennessy explained. “We’ve finished top-five in every one of them and we’re challenging for a win almost every night.”
Hennessy’s July 30th victory, his second in a row, was also the 50th feature win of his career. It comes five days short of 14 years from his first win on August 3, 2002. In all, 49 wins have come at Brighton. The lone feature race triumph outside Brighton came at New York’s Evans Mills Speedway on July 11, 2008 when the track still had a dirt surface.
“I’m proud of it. Way back before I ever thought I’d get 50 wins, it was my goal. Maybe sometime around the halfway mark, 25 or 30 wins, I always thought it would be cool to get to 50 wins,” Hennessy said proudly. “It’s a big number when you only run one night a week. I think 50 is pretty cool.”
The 50th victory helped build Hennessy’s point lead at the top of the Canadian Modified championship standings. Through the end of July, Hennessy’s lead is 230 points over fellow Picton driver Kraig Handley. Hennessy attributes a lot of his success to consistent hard work, but also knows a little luck goes a long way.
“Luck has a lot to do with racing. The guys who have been close in points to us that we’ve been racing with every week and trying to gain 10 or 15 points on, they’ve run in to problems in July. I’ve been able to finish every race and that’s been the difference. We bring a good car every week, so it is satisfying,” Hennessy said.
Hennessy has looked comfortable, if not dominant, in his new Larry Shaw-built car this season. Coming from the rear of the field most weeks, Hennessy has been able to use every lane to get to the front so far this year.
“The last two weeks I’ve won races on the top side of the racetrack. I’m not sure if I’ve ever done that before. It doesn’t spin a wheel through the black stuff. It has a ton of forward drive. It just hooks up,” Hennessy said of his No.87.
“There’s something different. I don’t know what it is. We have not been afraid to make adjustments for the changing track conditions through the night. I think I was with the other car a little bit because I thought I knew it so well,” Hennessy added.
The friendly rivalry between Hennessy and his step-son Tyson took a new step when Hennessy won his sixth race last week, giving him one more feature win than Tyson is his go-kart so far this year.
“He’s been telling me he has to win this week. He gets his grandmother on my case, my parents, everybody. It’s a little joke,” Hennessy said with a laugh.
Hennessy will be back behind the wheel of his Ontario Trucking News/Custom Automotive sponsored No.87 Canadian Modified on Saturday, August 6 with hopes of kickstarting the new month with his third straight win. For additional event information, visit www.brightonspeedway.ca.
SEASON STATS
Andrew Hennessy 2016 Season: 12 Starts – 6 Wins, 12 Top-5s, 12 Top-10s
HENNESSY MEDIA LINKS
Facebook: facebook.com/AndrewHennessy87
Schedule: www.brightonspeedway.ca/schedule.
Andrew Hennessy’s 2016 Canadian Modified season at Brighton Speedway is supported by a number of dedicated sponsors, including: RJ Equipment Rentals, Drew Harrison Haulage, Ontario Trucking News, Custom Automotive, A-can Home Improvements, Needle In A Haystack, KD Transmission, Brian Jewel Roofing, Mohawk Wholesale, Benson Auto Parts, Vanzuylen Tire Picton, Main Stop Gas Bar, Rapid Rad, and Bill and Jim Broad.
Prepared By Clayton Johns Media
Photo Attachment: Andrew Hennessy drives his RJ Equipment Rentals/Drew Harrison Haulage No.87 during Canadian Modified action at Brighton Speedway on July 30. (Rod Henderson photo).
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